VATICAN CITY, 11 OCT 2008 (VIS) - The Eleventh General Congregation of the Twelfth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops was held this afternoon. The president delegate on duty was Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer, archbishop of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Following are excerpts from the speeches given:
BISHOP LOUIS PORTELLA MBUYU OF KINKALA, PRESIDENT OF THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF THE CONGO. "In Congo-Brazzaville, a country that has been scarred by a series of internal conflicts, we are seeing an abundance of religious movements that can be classified into two categories. On the one hand, there are movements which practice a liberating reading [of the Bible], even while drawing on elements of traditional religion. These put themselves forward as a counter-reaction to a Christianity which is seen as a negation of African identity. On the other hand, there are movements deriving from the Pentecostal movement of American origin, characterised by a fundamentalist or even magical reading of the Bible. These tend to draw people's consciences away from the concrete problems of life in society. There are also movements that tend towards the esoteric or gnostic, characterised by a symbolic and ideological reading of the Bible. All of this has to be placed in a context of underdevelopment with its baggage of poverty and resignation. Faced with this complex situation, what emerges is the urgent need to help and stimulate Christ's faithful in the Congo to read the Word of God, to meditate on it, to pray it inasmuch as it can 'recreate' an African man who still carries within the consequences of the past. This requires easier access to the biblical text by means of translations. This is one of the pastoral emergencies of our Church. On the other hand, this reading of the Word of God has to inspire in the African reader a realisation of his responsibilities as regards a society that is waiting to be transformed in all its structures according to gospel values".
BISHOP GREGOR MARIA HANKE O.S.B., OF EICHSTATT, GERMANY. "The Word of God does not end with the published Bible nor with the announcement of the Word. In fact, the written Word does not have the same depth as the Word-Logos revealed in the Incarnation. The force of the written and proclaimed Word nourishes itself on the continuous presence in world history of this greater Word-Action. This is what turns the letters that make up Holy Scripture into the Word of God, which accompanies modern mankind on his journey and opens in him the dialogue of God with man. However, the Eucharist is the place where the Word of action is made present, with all its history of salvation and eschatology".
HIS BEATITUDE NERSES BEDROS XIX, PATRIARCH OF CILICIA OF THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICS, HEAD OF THE SYNOD OF THE ARMENIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. "According to tradition, the origin of the Armenian Church, evangelised by St. Gregory the Illuminator, can be traced to the adoption of Christianity as the State religion of Armenia in the year 301. At that time, the Armenian alphabet did not exist and Bible readings were proclaimed in Greek or Syriac. The reader then would translate it into Armenian. This did not help in understanding the Word of God by the Armenian neophytes. This led to the idea of inventing an alphabet to translate the Bible into the language of the people. ... We can conclude without hesitation that the invention of the Armenian alphabet in the year 406 had no other goal but that of evangelisation. This evangelisation helped maintain the Christian faith which was often endangered, as in 451 - the Bible had just been translated - and during the centuries to follow. The Word of God supported the Church and the Armenian people during their painful history. It impregnated and animated all of Armenian culture down the centuries. The lives of the Armenians were continually penetrated and guided by the Word of God".
BISHOP RICARDO ERNESTO CENTELLAS GUZMAN, AUXILIARY OF POTOSI, BOLIVIA. "Today's reality shows us that the Word of God and ancient and modern cultures are separate and parallel worlds. ... This is where the great pastoral challenge arises: to relaunch a true incarnation of the Word of God with its specific identity in real situations that commit us to a project for society in order to respond to the historical, social and cultural needs of our communities, so that we can better our lives in accordance with the life of Jesus of Nazareth. We cannot continue reading and meditating on the Word without the necessary relationship with cultures and without the consequence of social commitment. Contextual reading of the Word is a priority, a reading capable of transforming peoples and structures. ... Every action, project, group and movement, institution and structure of our Church must renew their true motivations and start once again on the basis of biblical inspiration. It is urgent to show the world a new way of being Church".
BISHOP FRIEDHELM HOFMANN OF WURZBURG, GERMANY. "How can we reach those persons who do not come to church? ... God's revelation is not limited to the Word of God in the Bible. It can also be found in nature and in culture. Of course, the highest and most intense revelation by God is the Incarnation of His Word in Jesus Christ. This is what needs to be explained. ... The Word of God has been incultured in the most diverse cultures. It has an impact on art. In Europe, we see an impressive cultural Christian history, almost 2000 years. Extraordinary architecture, works of figurative art, music and literature, all have been born of faith and embraced the witness of faith. Now, we must make this faith speak anew. During the Middle Ages the 'Biblia pauperum' was known, it visually explained parts of the history of salvation to those who could not read. Today, Christian culture must be explained because many persons no longer understand this language and no longer dedicate themselves directly to the Holy Scripture. ... Even in today's culture, however, one must search for the traces of faith and bring them back to their use as bridge. If it is true that artists are the seismographers of their time, then it would be good to take advantage of this and involve them in the proclamation of the Word of God".
BISHOP ZBIGNIEW KIERNIKOWSKI OF SIEDLCE, POLAND. "Modern man, not having heard the Word, often stands before it dumbstruck. ... 'Kerygma' is a very important moment. If however 'kerygma' is not followed by real formation in listening to the Word within the bosom of the community of faith, there is a risk of being led into various kinds of moralism, or falling into different types of fanaticism, or other forms of subjective interpretation. ... The approach used in the Neo-Catechumenal Way is based on initial 'kerygma' and followed by a serious process of initiation under the guidance of the Church (bishops, parish priests and catechists) carried out in small communities and with all the necessary stages of Christian initiation. In this way, the catechumenate makes the neophytes follow an itinerary that teaches them to refer the Word to their own lives".
SE/ELEVENTH CONGREGATION/... VIS 20081013 (1210)
Following are excerpts from the speeches given:
BISHOP LOUIS PORTELLA MBUYU OF KINKALA, PRESIDENT OF THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF THE CONGO. "In Congo-Brazzaville, a country that has been scarred by a series of internal conflicts, we are seeing an abundance of religious movements that can be classified into two categories. On the one hand, there are movements which practice a liberating reading [of the Bible], even while drawing on elements of traditional religion. These put themselves forward as a counter-reaction to a Christianity which is seen as a negation of African identity. On the other hand, there are movements deriving from the Pentecostal movement of American origin, characterised by a fundamentalist or even magical reading of the Bible. These tend to draw people's consciences away from the concrete problems of life in society. There are also movements that tend towards the esoteric or gnostic, characterised by a symbolic and ideological reading of the Bible. All of this has to be placed in a context of underdevelopment with its baggage of poverty and resignation. Faced with this complex situation, what emerges is the urgent need to help and stimulate Christ's faithful in the Congo to read the Word of God, to meditate on it, to pray it inasmuch as it can 'recreate' an African man who still carries within the consequences of the past. This requires easier access to the biblical text by means of translations. This is one of the pastoral emergencies of our Church. On the other hand, this reading of the Word of God has to inspire in the African reader a realisation of his responsibilities as regards a society that is waiting to be transformed in all its structures according to gospel values".
BISHOP GREGOR MARIA HANKE O.S.B., OF EICHSTATT, GERMANY. "The Word of God does not end with the published Bible nor with the announcement of the Word. In fact, the written Word does not have the same depth as the Word-Logos revealed in the Incarnation. The force of the written and proclaimed Word nourishes itself on the continuous presence in world history of this greater Word-Action. This is what turns the letters that make up Holy Scripture into the Word of God, which accompanies modern mankind on his journey and opens in him the dialogue of God with man. However, the Eucharist is the place where the Word of action is made present, with all its history of salvation and eschatology".
HIS BEATITUDE NERSES BEDROS XIX, PATRIARCH OF CILICIA OF THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICS, HEAD OF THE SYNOD OF THE ARMENIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. "According to tradition, the origin of the Armenian Church, evangelised by St. Gregory the Illuminator, can be traced to the adoption of Christianity as the State religion of Armenia in the year 301. At that time, the Armenian alphabet did not exist and Bible readings were proclaimed in Greek or Syriac. The reader then would translate it into Armenian. This did not help in understanding the Word of God by the Armenian neophytes. This led to the idea of inventing an alphabet to translate the Bible into the language of the people. ... We can conclude without hesitation that the invention of the Armenian alphabet in the year 406 had no other goal but that of evangelisation. This evangelisation helped maintain the Christian faith which was often endangered, as in 451 - the Bible had just been translated - and during the centuries to follow. The Word of God supported the Church and the Armenian people during their painful history. It impregnated and animated all of Armenian culture down the centuries. The lives of the Armenians were continually penetrated and guided by the Word of God".
BISHOP RICARDO ERNESTO CENTELLAS GUZMAN, AUXILIARY OF POTOSI, BOLIVIA. "Today's reality shows us that the Word of God and ancient and modern cultures are separate and parallel worlds. ... This is where the great pastoral challenge arises: to relaunch a true incarnation of the Word of God with its specific identity in real situations that commit us to a project for society in order to respond to the historical, social and cultural needs of our communities, so that we can better our lives in accordance with the life of Jesus of Nazareth. We cannot continue reading and meditating on the Word without the necessary relationship with cultures and without the consequence of social commitment. Contextual reading of the Word is a priority, a reading capable of transforming peoples and structures. ... Every action, project, group and movement, institution and structure of our Church must renew their true motivations and start once again on the basis of biblical inspiration. It is urgent to show the world a new way of being Church".
BISHOP FRIEDHELM HOFMANN OF WURZBURG, GERMANY. "How can we reach those persons who do not come to church? ... God's revelation is not limited to the Word of God in the Bible. It can also be found in nature and in culture. Of course, the highest and most intense revelation by God is the Incarnation of His Word in Jesus Christ. This is what needs to be explained. ... The Word of God has been incultured in the most diverse cultures. It has an impact on art. In Europe, we see an impressive cultural Christian history, almost 2000 years. Extraordinary architecture, works of figurative art, music and literature, all have been born of faith and embraced the witness of faith. Now, we must make this faith speak anew. During the Middle Ages the 'Biblia pauperum' was known, it visually explained parts of the history of salvation to those who could not read. Today, Christian culture must be explained because many persons no longer understand this language and no longer dedicate themselves directly to the Holy Scripture. ... Even in today's culture, however, one must search for the traces of faith and bring them back to their use as bridge. If it is true that artists are the seismographers of their time, then it would be good to take advantage of this and involve them in the proclamation of the Word of God".
BISHOP ZBIGNIEW KIERNIKOWSKI OF SIEDLCE, POLAND. "Modern man, not having heard the Word, often stands before it dumbstruck. ... 'Kerygma' is a very important moment. If however 'kerygma' is not followed by real formation in listening to the Word within the bosom of the community of faith, there is a risk of being led into various kinds of moralism, or falling into different types of fanaticism, or other forms of subjective interpretation. ... The approach used in the Neo-Catechumenal Way is based on initial 'kerygma' and followed by a serious process of initiation under the guidance of the Church (bishops, parish priests and catechists) carried out in small communities and with all the necessary stages of Christian initiation. In this way, the catechumenate makes the neophytes follow an itinerary that teaches them to refer the Word to their own lives".
SE/ELEVENTH CONGREGATION/... VIS 20081013 (1210)
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